


Into the Starlight

by KaelinaLovesLomaris



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars: Rebellion Era - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hostage Situations, Self-Sacrifice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:27:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24031285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KaelinaLovesLomaris/pseuds/KaelinaLovesLomaris
Summary: The Empire has the Rebel base on Vrogas Vas surrounded, and Vader offers them an ultimatum: hand over Luke Skywalker and live, or refuse and he will raze the base to the ground.There's really only one option.
Relationships: Luke Skywalker & Darth Vader
Comments: 80
Kudos: 723





	Into the Starlight

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Revenge of the Fifth!
> 
> Title from Starset's song _Into the Unknown_ , not to be confused with the song of the same name from Frozen II.
> 
> Warning for mentions of threatened suicide

The last thing Luke expected in the middle of an attack on the base was to be paged to the command center by Mon Mothma herself. They were surrounded, more than half their troops already wiped out by Vader and his 501st. They had lost three squadrons of X- and A-wings to the Imperials when Vader had dropped out of hyperspace on top of them running drills just outside of atmo before they had been able to pull back. Thankfully Luke’s squadron had not been part of the drill, but now he was helping to coordinate evacuation prep in case there was an opening in the blockade. The transports wouldn’t have much coverage, with only a squadron and a half of pilots left, but Luke doubted any of them would make it off planet anyways. He was glad Han and Leia had not returned yet and were not caught up in the mess.

Luke caught Wedge’s eyes with a frown when the intercom announced that he was needed in the command center. There was no reason for them to need him. Even if they wanted a status on the evac prep, they would ask for Commander Narra, not him.

“Better go see what they want,” Wedge said. Luke nodded, setting down the box he was carrying.

The command center was halfway across the base from the hangar he had been in, so it took him a few minutes to get there. He got a few curious looks from people as he passed, and he shrugged at each of them, just as confused as they were.

The atmosphere in the command room was tense, and even with his limited grasp on the Force, he could feel their fear and the strain of an unresolved disagreement. It got worse when he entered the room, and he wasn’t sure if it was just because he was closer to the source or if it was a result of him being present.

“Lieutenant Skywalker, thank you for coming so quickly,” Mothma said. “I wish I did not have to ask this of you, but I have no other option. This is a message that we just received from Lord Vader.” She seemed paler than usual, and Luke suddenly had a very bad feeling about the situation.

Mothma pressed a button on the console and the room was filled with the chilling hiss of Vader’s respirator.

“Your base is surrounded. You have no avenue of retreat and no hope of rescue. You have one option to save the lives of the Rebels on this planet. I know you are harboring Luke Skywalker. If you hand him over to me, I will cease hostilities against this base and allow you 24 hours to remove your personnel and equipment from this planet without harassment or detainment. If you refuse, I will resume my attack upon your base and take him by force, killing everyone in my way. You have 15 minutes to decide.”

The recording stopped, and Luke couldn’t breathe.

“Why?” he gasped. Surely Vader hadn’t made the connection that he was the pilot who destroyed the Death Star. The Alliance had done all they could to keep that knowledge from spreading, and the bounty notice for the Death Star pilot was still nameless. He knew he had one with his name on it, and the amount on it was a bit higher than would be expected for a simple flight lieutenant, but nothing to warrant this, the ransoming of an entire Alliance base against his surrender.

“We don’t know,” Mothma said, her voice carefully gentle. Luke looked at her, and he couldn’t bear the compassion in her eyes.

“You’re giving me to him, aren’t you?” He felt surprisingly calm as he said it. The panic hadn’t set in yet, he figured.

But Mothma shook her head. “We cannot, and will not, force you to do this. This is your choice, and your choice only.”

Luke glanced around the room. Half of the command staff wouldn’t look at him, the other half’s expressions ranged from pity to anger, and he couldn’t find it in himself to blame them. It almost appeared as though this entire bloody attack had been because of him. So many people killed so Vader could get to him, and Luke knew he had no real choice. He would end up in Vader’s hands one way or another. He couldn’t condemn everyone else on the base to death, including Wedge and Tycho and Wes and Hobbie, if he had a chance of saving them. Even if Vader broke his word and attacked anyways, at least then his conscience would be clear.

“How long ago did he send that?” Luke asked, his voice fainter than he’d like.

Mothma glanced at her chrono. “Seven minutes ago.”

Eight minutes. Eight minutes until he had to surrender himself to his father’s killer. Eight minutes to say goodbye.

“Can I have a minute?”

Mothma managed a smile, but it was weak. “Of course.”

“I need to speak to Wedge.”

“I will have him paged down.”

Luke nodded, but couldn’t bring himself to thank her. It wasn’t her fault, wasn’t any of Command’s fault, but in a way he thought it was crueler to force him to make the decision than to just do it for him. He’d gone on suicide missions for the Alliance before, the Death Star Run the most obvious, though he had volunteered for that one. If they ordered him, then this would just be another mission, albeit with less chance of survival. He could be angry with them if they had arrested him and thrown him handcuffed at Vader’s feet. But he couldn’t be angry with them if it was his decision. _Leia_ would be angry with them for even asking him. Because she would know that he wouldn’t even consider this a choice. But without the anger, all that was left to him was fear, and that was not a productive emotion. He knew anger wasn’t either, but he thought at least it might sustain him better against Vader.

He shook himself free from his thoughts when he heard Wedge’s name over the intercom and moved out into the hallway to wait for him. He tried to ignore all the pairs of eyes tracking his every movement, and he realized that although his decision was obvious to himself, no one else knew what he was planning to do, if he would agree to sacrifice himself for them.

He glanced down at his chrono almost obsessively as he waited for Wedge, not wanting to run over the time allotted for the decision. That would be the worst thing, to agonize over this and then have his decision not matter anyways.

Wedge frowned when he spotted Luke in the hallway. Luke glanced down again, six and a half minutes, before meeting Wedge halfway. He didn’t give Wedge a chance to ask what was going on, just launched into a breathless explanation of the situation, knowing there was so little time to spare.

Wedge was horrified.

“Luke, no, you can’t!”

“I have to. He’ll get me either way, Wedge. I don’t want your blood on my hands.”

“No, we’ll get you out, we’ll hide you, we’ll do _something_.”

“And then he’ll kill all of you. I’m not worth all of your lives. I can save you. Let me do it.”

“Luke, if he wants you that badly, it means he knows who you are, what you’ve done. He won’t go easy on you.”

“I know, and I’m not asking permission. I’ve made up my mind. Don’t make this any harder, I’m freaking out as it is.” He was touched, really, at how hard his friend was willing to fight for him, but it really wasn’t worth it.

Wedge dropped his gaze. “I’m sorry. I just… I know what the Empire is capable of. I don’t want you to go through that.”

Luke grimaced. “I know. I’m not looking forward to it.” Leia hadn’t spoken much of her time with Vader on the Death Star, but what he did know was exceedingly unpleasant. “But what else can I do, Wedge? It’s not like we have that many options.”

Uncomfortable silence fell between them, and Luke stole another glance at his chrono. Three minutes. He had to respond soon or his choice wouldn’t make a difference. His stomach tied itself in knots, fear coiling in his chest and making it difficult to breathe. But he knew he was doing the right thing. One person’s life, even, especially, if it was his own, was not worth the lives of everyone else.

“Get everyone out,” he said. “Whatever happens to me, don’t come back for me, just make sure everyone else gets out. I don’t know if Vader will keep his word, and I don’t want my sacrifice to be in vain.”

Luke’s hand drifted down to the lightsaber clipped at his belt. He unhooked it and held it out to Wedge.

“Can you give this to Leia for me? Tell her to keep it safe.” It pained him to part with it, especially now, but he would rather Leia have it than Vader.

Wedge looked at it for a moment before shaking his head. “Keep it. Don’t hesitate to use it if you get the chance.” Wedge grabbed him suddenly, pulling him into a desperate hug. “If anyone has a chance to survive this, it’s you. I’ll watch the skies for you.”

Luke pulled away. “Wedge, I… I don’t think, this time…”

“You’ve faced him once, you can do it again.” But Wedge’s eyes were glistening, and Luke knew what his friend was trying to do. He was grateful for it.

“Just look out for everyone, alright? Make sure Han doesn’t give up. Leia needs him, even if she won’t admit it.” It was a lot to put on Wedge’s shoulders, especially since he would be hurting just as much as them, but that was why Luke trusted him with it. No one else would understand the same way.

“I will.”

“Thank you.” Luke took a deep breath. “I’m almost out of time. Goodbye, Wedge.”

“May the Force be with you,” Wedge whispered. Luke managed a smile for him at that before turning away to re-enter the command room.

Despite that she most definitely didn’t mean to, Mothma’s relief showed plainly on her face when Luke gave her a small nod.

“Would you like me to tell him?”

Luke shook his head. “I’ll do it.” He tried to sound strong, to keep the waver out of his voice, but the pitying smile on her face made it clear he hadn’t entirely succeeded. “It’s my choice.”

Mothma typed a few things into the console, and Luke fought to steady his breathing and his heart. At the rate it was going, he was sure Vader would be able to hear its beat over the comm.

“You are cutting it close, Mothma,” Vader growled. “I am almost out of patience. What is your decision?”

Everyone’s eyes were on him as Luke took a step forward to speak into the comm. “I will go,” he said, his voice barely loud enough for himself to hear. He took a deep breath and spoke louder. “I will surrender myself to you in exchange for the safety of this base.”

“Skywalker.” Luke shivered at the sound of his name in that baritone, heavy with satisfaction. “You have made a wise decision. I await your arrival.”

The comm went dead, and Luke staggered forward, catching himself on the edge of the console. Mothma set a gentle hand on his shoulder, giving it a squeeze as he steadied himself.

He took a moment to breathe, trying to ignore the feeling of all the eyes on him. As soon as he felt marginally more in control of himself, he straightened up and met Mothma’s eyes. He unstrapped his chrono from his wrist and handed it to her, not wanting any of the codes he had programmed into it to fall into Imperial hands. The last thing Leia needed was some Imperial intelligence officer comming her personal line and trying to trace it.

He double checked that he didn’t have anything else on him that would be interesting to the Empire, aside from his lightsaber, but Wedge was right, he should keep it just in case he had the opportunity to use it.

Satisfied that his mind was the only incriminating thing left on him, he accepted the small escort to the entrance of the base that surveillance said Vader had taken up residence outside of. He pushed down the sting of hurt that Command didn’t trust him enough to walk there on his own, but he really couldn’t blame them. The lives of every Rebel on the base rested on his ability to uphold a bargain that involved him walking into the arms of his father’s murderer.

He let them check him over again, more roughly than he would have expected, as though they thought he might actually be a spy and was trying to deliver sensitive information to the Empire. As though there weren’t less drastic ways to do that. If he wasn’t using most of his brain’s capacity to actively avoid thinking about what was waiting for him, he might have been offended at _that_.

Despite their unwarranted and confusing hostility, they at least had the decency to let him walk through the door of his own accord instead of shoving him out.

 _They must blame me for all the deaths Vader has caused while trying to get to me._ There really wasn’t any other explanation for their attitudes towards him. Not that he wanted to be praised for his actions or anything, that would almost be as bad as this, but he had been more prepared to ward off awkward gratitude than deal with open hostility.

The door slammed shut behind him, and he braced himself before looking up to find Vader. He was easy to spot in the white sea of stormtroopers, even with the distance between them. Luke’s breath caught in his throat. He couldn’t believe he was really doing this.

It took everything in him to take the first step. The distance seemed almost insurmountable, with as many steps as it would require for him to reach Vader. At the same time, it disappeared all too rapidly, each step bringing him closer to a fate he had never wanted to face.

Luke stopped a few yards from Vader, unable to force his feet to take him any closer. He’d been closer on Cymoon, close enough to tangle lightsabers, but there he’d been fighting, not surrendering, not giving himself up to whatever horrors the Sith had planned for him. There Vader had been uninterested in him, wanting only to strike him down as a nuisance and move on. Luke wasn’t sure he wanted to know what had caused Vader’s change in attitude.

It couldn’t mean anything good for him.

~*~

Vader watched Luke approach, and it took every ounce of patience and self control he had learned since becoming a Sith to let the boy come to him instead of stalking forward to close the distance between them himself. His son kept his pace steady, but slow, and Vader could feel the fear and reluctance in him. He knew the strength Luke must have to willingly deliver himself to his enemy in spite of the fear. Not many would have that strength.

Vader had been pleasantly surprised when Luke himself had responded to his ultimatum. He had been expecting the Rebellion to give Luke to him, not for Luke to surrender himself. It showed a depth of loyalty that would be incredibly useful if he could convince Luke to focus it on him. Loyalty to anyone else, however, would be a weakness the Emperor would be all too happy to exploit.

Luke stopped too far away. He was close enough that Vader could see his eyes, watch his expression as he bit his lip, his gaze flicking from Vader to the stormtroopers around him and back to Vader, but too far away to grab. Vader clenched his fists to keep from shifting on his feet. It had been hard enough to not go to meet Luke when Luke was still approaching. Now he was more anxious than ever to have Luke at his side, and he wasn’t sure he could wait much longer.

“I’m not coming any closer, Lord Vader, until you remove your troops. I need some reassurance that you’re not just going to attack the base anyways as soon as you have me.” His voice carried well across the desert between them, but Vader could hear the quaver in it.

Vader growled, his fraying patience spent. “Bring him to me.”

Luke skittered back when the two stormtroopers flanking Vader advanced on him. He fumbled at his belt and drew his blaster, bringing it up to his own temple.

Vader’s heart stuttered, caught in the freezing grip of fear. “Stop!”

His chest ached, and he told himself it was just from his pacemaker wrangling his heart back into living submission.

His troopers froze, hands on their own weapons, which were set to stun as Vader had ordered when the Rebellion had agreed to his terms. He would not risk Luke dying now, when Vader was so close. Which made his son’s latest stunt all the more frustrating.

“Luke, put the blaster down.”

“Not until you give your word and withdraw your troops,” Luke retorted. He kept his face carefully determined, but Vader could feel his terror exploding into the Force. There was a thin thread of anger too, directed at Vader. Less rage than he had sensed during their meeting on Cymoon, and he wasn’t sure if Luke’s fear was just overriding it or if he had learned to control it better since then.

“You have my word that I will uphold my end of the bargain if you uphold yours,” Vader said. Despite his frustration at Luke’s actions, he was pleased to see that his son had enough sense to insist on proof, even if he was just as reckless as all the reports said.

“That’s not good enough,” Luke snarled through clenched teeth. “I’m not that naïve, Vader!”

“And I am not foolish enough to leave your base unguarded so your friends can launch a rescue before I have you safely in my custody, young one.”

“Then we are at an impasse.”

“I can still fire on your base.”

“And I will pull this trigger. Don’t underestimate me. I’m going to die anyways. I can just save you the trouble and myself the suffering.”

Fear and guilt tightened its grip on Vader’s heart at Luke’s words, but he forced himself to speak calmly. “And then you will be out of bargaining chips, and I will still destroy the base. Your only hope of saving your friends is surrendering to me and believing that I will keep my word.”

Vader felt Luke’s resolve waver and instinctively tried to hold his breath. The respirator protested, and the pain was enough to momentarily distract him until Luke’s face crumpled and his arm dropped with a sharp curse.

Vader twitched his fingers and the blaster leapt from Luke’s hand to his; he was not going to give the foolish boy the chance to repeat that stunt. The stormtroopers surged forward and grasped Luke’s arms before the boy could protest. He cried out and struggled for a moment before giving up, slumping in the stormtroopers’ grips and letting them drag him forward. They pushed Luke to his knees in front of Vader, and he allowed himself a small smile at the defiance still in Luke’s eyes when he threw his head back to glare up at him. He did not want his son’s spirit broken, after all. He would need to be strong to complete his training and help him confront the Emperor.

Luke held his gaze, eerily accurate despite the mask, for a long moment before his lip trembled and he dropped his head, a shudder running through his body.

“You have what you wanted, now let them go,” he said, his voice small, defeated. Vader considered him, letting his respirator cycle several times before comming General Veers.

“Withdraw your troops. I have what we came here for.” He watched Luke closely, noting the tension that flooded his body at his words. He had to know by now that the whole operation had been because of him, and Vader knew he would feel responsible for all the lives lost in the battle.

Vader ignored the flurry of activity caused by the retreat order to watch his son. Luke hadn’t moved since he had bowed his head, but he was breathing in gasps, his whole body shaking in time to the fear Vader could feel rolling off him into the Force.

Vader dismissed the troopers holding Luke down with a wave of his hand, and Luke didn’t react when their hands left his shoulders. Vader waited until they were completely alone before crouching down in front of his son. Luke’s head was still lowered, but even through the red haze of his mask, Vader could see tracks of tears down Luke’s cheeks.

Vader gently placed a finger under Luke’s chin, intending to tilt the boy’s head up to face him, but Luke jerked away from his touch. He bared his teeth in a snarl as Vader gripped his chin tighter and forced his head up.

He stared at Luke, mesmerized by the sight of his son up close. He had examined all the holos he could get his hands on, but they could not compare to the real thing. Luke’s features were a delicate mix of his own and… _hers_ , while somehow also uniquely Luke’s. Without meaning to, Vader swiped his thumb across Luke’s cheekbone gently. Luke startled.

“What do you want with me anyways? How could I possibly be worth an entire base to you? I’m nothing.” Luke’s words were only slightly a deflection. He genuinely doubted his own value, and Vader was offended.

“On the contrary, Skywalker, you are the most important person in the Galaxy.” Luke tensed, wrenching his head away from Vader’s hand again, and this time Vader released him.

“Don’t mess with me.”

“I will never lie to you.”

Luke frowned, clearly not yet believing him. Vader glanced around them. The middle of a bloodstained battlefield was not the right place to tell him the truth, and he also did not want to run the risk of someone overhearing or Luke causing a scene in public. No, it was best to stick to his original plan and wait until he had his son secured in his quarters on the _Devastator_.

He caught movement at the edge of his HUD and snatched Luke’s wrist before his fingers could close around the hilt of his lightsaber hanging at his belt. Luke let out a surprised yelp and tried to yank his hand away. Vader did not let go.

“I will need to be more distracted than that for that to succeed.” Vader plucked the saber from Luke’s belt with his other hand. As on Cymoon, the weight and shape were painfully familiar. He was reluctantly grateful that Obi-Wan had given it to Luke or else he might have unknowingly killed his son that day.

Unnerved by the thoughts brought by holding the old saber, he clipped it next to his current one and stood, pulling Luke to his feet with him. It wouldn’t be long before his troops finished their retreat, and he wanted Luke safely off planet before the Rebellion could attempt a rescue.

Luke tried twisting his wrist out of Vader’s grip, digging his heels into the ground, but only succeeded in throwing himself off balance. He stumbled into Vader’s side, yelping as Vader caught his shoulder with his other hand to steady him.

“Cease, or I will restrain you.” Luke glowered at him but stopped fighting. He still did not go easily, keeping as much distance between them as he could and dragging his feet. Cautiously, Vader touched his mind with the Force.

There was barely room for coherent thought in Luke’s mind. It was a swirling mess of fear, for himself, and his friends if Vader didn’t keep his word, fragments of remembered briefings on how to survive Imperial custody for as long as possible, painful expectations of how he would be treated as soon as Vader got him on board his ship, even half-formed fears of being dragged before the Emperor and publicly executed for being the destroyer of the Death Star.

Vader’s fury burned. If Luke had not been stolen from him, he would never have been made to feel such unnecessary fear of his father. He would feel _safe_ when Vader was near, not terrified for his life. He would never have needed to surrender himself to someone he thought was an enemy to save the lives of those unworthy of his sacrifice.

Luke choked back a sob, and Vader realized he had not withdrawn from Luke’s mind before allowing himself to display his anger. He quickly put a shield between his own mind and his son’s and worked to rein in his emotions. It was difficult, not being used to having someone other than his Master able to sense his moods, but he succeeded after a few cycles of his respirator.

His mind calmed, Vader had to fight back an unfamiliar parental urge to comfort Luke. It would do no good to try to ease him now, before he knew the truth, and to do it now, with witnesses, would negate all he was trying to accomplish by waiting until he had Luke secured in his quarters. As much as he hated it, he had to leave Luke in his fear for now.

He risked a glance back at Luke, as far behind him as the length of their arms allowed, and grit his teeth at the sight of tears on his face. But the moment Luke felt his eyes on him, he tilted his head up to meet Vader’s gaze, his jaw set and his eyes hardening in defiance. It was unexpectedly, and unintentionally as far as his son was concerned, reassuring. Like before, Vader was pleased with Luke’s strength of will, even through his fear.

They reached the shuttle, and though Vader had been content to let Luke keep his distance on the walk over, he now pulled Luke closer, transferring his grip on his son’s wrist to his other hand and grasping Luke’s shoulder, pushing the boy up the ramp ahead of him, cutting off any avenue of escape.

Luke was trembling under his hands as he forced him into a seat and strapped him in for the flight up to the _Devastator_. Vader didn’t bother to sit as the shuttle took off, using the magnetic locks on his boots and his unyielding grip on Luke’s shoulder to keep himself steady. He couldn’t have Luke darting off on the Star Destroyer during a moment of distraction as he unstrapped himself. As highly trained as his troops were, he didn’t entirely trust them to obey any “alive and unharmed” order he would put out for Luke’s recapture, especially considering how adept his son had proven at evading apprehension in the past. And in light of Luke’s stunt on the planet, he wouldn’t put it past him to try to provoke them into shooting first and asking questions later. He clearly feared captivity more than death at this point.

The ride up to the _Devastator_ took longer than Vader thought it should, but he knew it was just his impatience to get Luke secured and alone. He found himself cataloguing every twitch Luke made, ascertaining himself it wasn’t the beginnings of an escape attempt, even though there was nowhere for Luke to go, trapped on the shuttle.

Luke stiffened as the shuttle set down in the hangar, but a quick brush of Vader’s mind against his, careful not to project any emotions at him, revealed it to be terror rather than any readying to move, and Luke offered little in the way of resistance as Vader unstrapped him and grasped his arm firmly as the ramp was lowered.

Vader smiled slightly at the familiar sight of his hangar bay. He almost had him home.

~*~

Luke couldn’t believe this was really happening as he was marched out of the shuttle into the hangar bay of Vader’s Star Destroyer. After a year of running and close escapes, his luck had finally run out, and in the worst way. If the anger he had felt from Vader on the way to the shuttle was any indication, he was going to suffer badly for whatever it was he was wanted for. Most likely the destruction of the Death Star. There was no other reason for Vader to be so furious with him.

Vader held onto his arm with bruising strength as he led him through the corridors of the ship, each one nearly identical to the last. He tried to keep track of each of the turns, form a mental map he could use to plan an escape route if he got really lucky, but quickly found that it was impossible. The only thing he was certain of was that they had been working their way _upward_ instead of down, which was confusing on its own. Luke knew enough about the layout of Imperial capital ships to know that the brig should be located near the belly of the ship, not up near the bridge. At this point, he wasn’t certain that Vader wasn’t guiding him on a purposely convoluted route to their destination just to mess with his sense of direction. 

This time, Vader did not allow him to keep his distance from him, holding him close enough that Vader’s cape whipped his leg with each step. The fabric felt surprisingly heavy. Luke tried to focus on little details like that rather than what awaited him when they finally reached wherever Vader was taking him. He was only marginally successful, his mind constantly skipping back to all the stories he had heard of Vader’s brutality towards Rebel prisoners and the little he knew of Leia’s time in Vader’s hands.

It felt like an eternity before Vader slowed, pulling Luke to a stop with him in front of a door that looked like all the other doors they had passed. Despite the fact that the door was clearly locked, it opened for them with no use of a code cylinder or passcode or any other unlocking mechanism that Luke could see. Had Vader used the Force? That was a skill Luke desperately needed to learn.

Vader only released his grip on Luke’s arm once the door had closed and locked again behind them. Luke took the opportunity to put as much space as he could between himself and the Sith. He was surprised to find himself in what looked like an office rather than a cell, even if they never _had_ gone down, but maybe Vader just wanted privacy for this, whatever _this_ might entail.

“So how long before you kill me like you did my father?” He managed to keep the tremor out of his voice this time. An improvement over the earlier tears. He had never wanted to cry in front of his father’s murderer.

Vader tilted his head slightly and crossed his arms. He made no move to close the distance Luke had put between them, but Luke could not bring himself to be grateful. “That is something we must discuss, young one.”

“I don’t really want to discuss anything with you,” Luke snarled. He knew any “discussion” was likely to be unpleasant and about information he’d rather not share with the Empire.

“I will not harm you, Luke,” Vader said, as though he could read Luke’s mind. Which Luke wasn’t entirely certain he couldn’t. Anything was theoretically possible with the Force, especially for someone with so much more experience than him. He wished Ben had been able to give him a little more warning of what to expect when he met Vader. He was so far out of his depth, not even knowing what Vader was capable of. But at least kindness was something he was certain he could _not_ expect from him.

“I believe that even less than anything else you’ve told me today.”

“You will come to believe me, young one.” And Vader, darn him, sounded so smug that Luke had the urge to do something childish like stick his tongue out at him. But he had already embarrassed himself enough by crying. He wasn’t going to do anything more to lower Vader’s estimation of him. Not that he _cared_ what Vader thought of him. But if he was going to die at the hands of his father’s murderer, he was going to do it with as much dignity as possible.

“You are not going to die, Luke, and certainly not by my hands,” Vader said, and now Luke was _sure_ that he could read his mind. He remembered Ben saying something about shielding his mind and tried to imagine a thick durasteel wall around it, blocking it from view.

Vader snorted, a heavy sound through his mask. “That is a poor attempt at shielding, little one. I will teach you to do better.” He took several steps towards Luke, and Luke stumbled backwards, not daring to take his eyes off Vader to look where he was going. His back thumped hard into the wall, and he stared at Vader, horrified even though the Sith had stopped moving.

“I don’t want you to teach me anything! I will not turn to the Dark Side. Why don’t you just kill me and get it over with?” A terrible idea was forming in his mind, a reason why Vader would want him alive, why he would give up an entire Alliance base, including Senator Mothma, for him. He knew Force sensitives were rare, having been hunted by the Empire almost to extinction, but if Vader or the Emperor wanted to _train him_ … that would explain it, though not why Vader hadn’t been interested in him on Cymoon. Or why they would choose _him_ of all people, instead of one of the countless other Force sensitives they had murdered.

“Have you not been listening to me, Luke? I have no intention of killing you. You are -”

“I will be worthless to you,” Luke interrupted. “I won’t cooperate with you. I refuse to learn from the man who killed my father. I won’t -”

“I did not kill your father.”

Luke closed his mouth with a snap. Vader took another step forward, and Luke slid along the wall away from him. This time, Vader followed until Luke was pressed into the corner and Vader stood directly in front of him, close enough that Luke had to crane his neck back to keep Vader’s mask in sight.

“What?” Luke managed.

Vader’s hand came up, and Luke flinched away from it, expecting it to wrap around his exposed throat, but it just carefully brushed his bangs away from his face. Luke shivered at the gentle touch, turning his head away and squeezing his eyes closed.

“Please just tell me what you want from me,” Luke begged.

Hands on his shoulders, and Luke looked up in time to see Vader drop to one knee in front of him, as he had on the battlefield of Vrogas Vas.

“I just want you. Luke, you are… you are my _son_.”

Luke stared at Vader, close enough that he almost thought he could make out Vader’s eyes behind the red-tinted lenses of his mask, and tried not to comprehend his words. Luke shook his head, breaking their eye contact.

“No. That can’t… That can’t be true. You can’t be my… No.” Luke’s voice broke into a sob. He pressed a hand over his mouth, shaking his head again.

“It is. I am your father,” Vader said, so gently. One hand came up and stroked the side of his face, brushing away tears Luke hadn’t realized had started falling. His tenderness, a gentleness that Luke had never thought Vader capable of, helped settle the revelation in Luke’s mind, helped dampen the instinctive rejection of such an outlandish claim. But it made a lot of things make sense. Vader’s willingness to trade an entire base for just him, the size of the bounty for a simple flight lieutenant, how Vader always seemed to target the bases Luke was on… though Luke shied away from thinking about everything Vader had done to get to him. That was more than Luke was willing to deal with right at this second. The guilt of everyone who had died on and above Vrogas Vas was still weighing on him as it was.

“How long have you known?” he whispered. It couldn’t have been very long, certainly not before Cymoon or Luke suspected that confrontation would have gone a whole lot differently.

Vader’s hand left his face to unclip Luke’s lightsaber from where it still hung on Vader’s belt. Vader held it up between them.

“I recognized this, when I took it from you on Cymoon. You were correct when you said it was your father’s.”

Luke’s heart stuttered. That was such a flimsy thing. What if Vader was _wrong_? Or what if Ben had given him a random lightsaber that hadn’t really been Anakin’s, and he just said it was to give Luke a sense of connection to it? Or what if Luke wasn’t really Anakin’s son at all, just some Force sensitive kid Ben had rescued and told the Larses was Anakin’s so they would raise him? Luke was startled to realize that the doubt led to fear not only because of what would probably happen to him, but because of how _disappointed_ Luke would be if Vader was wrong about this, if he had to lose his father all over again. The surprise that followed was almost enough to snap him out of his building panic.

Vader must have sensed it, because he set the lightsaber aside and reached up to place both hands on either side of Luke’s face, gently brushing his hair away from his eyes.

“I did my research after that. There is very little doubt that you are my son. A simple blood test would assuage the rest of that doubt.”

“And if I’m not?” Luke barely dared to ask. Being Vader’s… being Anakin’s son was what made him different from all of the other Jedi and Force sensitives that Vader had slaughtered. If he ceased to have that protection… A small sob almost broke loose again, and he pressed the back of his hand against his mouth to try to contain it.

“You are,” Vader reassured. “Can you not feel it?”

He could. As little training as he had with the Force, he could still feel the sense of rightness around them and the truth in Vader’s words. He nodded, dropping his hand away from his mouth. He didn’t know enough about the Force to really say with certainty that Vader wasn’t manipulating what he was feeling, but what reason would he have to lie to him? What would he stand to gain by tricking a random Force sensitive into believing he was their father?

It didn’t entirely erase Luke’s fears, but it was enough to give him hope, to let him feel the potent mix of joy and horror that was beating in his chest. Suddenly drained by all the emotional upheavals, he slumped forward into Vader’s arms, pressing his forehead to Vader’s shoulder and crying into it as his father held him.


End file.
